10 money-saving tips that saved this mum a fortune

By Melinda Ayre| 2 years ago

Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess who knew a great deal about yoga, kale and balayage, but very little about money.

Her powerful prince handed her a nice fat wad of money every week for her to spend. If she tripped up and bought too many clothes for the children, or lamb cutlets that weren't on sale — he would get rather cross.

The princess didn't know how much it cost to run their kingdom. She didn't know how much the mortgage was or whether they had life insurance. And she thought super was something you say when something was, well, awesome.

Many years later when the kingdom collapsed and the prince disappeared forever, the princess was left with a pretty castle — but no money at all.

So, she got to work and summoned a very clever money man to help her.

She started keeping more gold coins than she spent and piling them up in the tower. And she and her children lived happily ever after.

So ladies, listen up. I've learned the hardest way possible that life is not a fairy tale. Some day your prince might come, but that doesn't mean he’ll stick around or that you should let him control your purse strings. Ever.

Tiny steps like understanding where your money is going daily and how much super you have, will start to empower you financially.

To get money mindful, I had a 90-minute consultation with well-known money sorting man David Rankin, who recently appeared on Channel Nine’s Today Show.

And it changed my life.

He's a breath of fresh air in the stuffy finance world. He won't baffle you with investment opportunities and trust funds. “There’s no point looking at the macro if you haven’t sorted the money micro,” says Rankin. His approach is to drill down to the nitty gritty like how much you spend on hair colours and lattes. What you can do without and what you need to prepare for.

Here are 10 pieces of advice he gave me to get you started. If you need more help, get in touch with David, here or buy his book here.

1. Become a money detective.

You need to find out where your money’s going. Grab your bank account statements, your utility bills and enter everything you’re spending into a calendar. Hair colour every six weeks? Daily coffee? David noted everything I spend and mapped it out for the year. “It’s like Google Maps for your spending – we are plotting your money.” And it’s eye opening how everything adds up.

“Many people come to me completely unaware of their money situation,” admits Rankin. “Think of your financial situation like an engine running your life. You want to reach a point where you can see the pistons working and your financial situation is completely transparent.”

2. Know when direct debits come out.

Ever run out of money at the checkout cause a whopping insurance payment just came out? “If your insurance comes out the same time every month – make a note of it,” suggests Rankin. “And don’t forget Netflix, bank fees and tolls. We often forget about small, regular amounts,” he adds.

3. There’s a time for everything.

When you are trying to get on top of your finances – it’s not a time for giving to charity or handing out pocket money to your kids. “That time will come. Your financial strength will result in your children’s financial strength over time,” he says.

4. Are you getting the best deal?

David urged me to ring Optus and see if I was on the best possible plan. I wasn’t, so I changed it. They also told me I was subscribed to a gaming company in India. What? It was adding $25 a month to my account. Optus cancelled it and refunded me the money. Boom. More in my pocket.

5. Diarise big-ticket events.

“We diarise everything in our lives so why not our big ticket items?” says Rankin. “Diarise family birthdays and the annual family holiday so you can plan ahead. Knowing the future changes the way you act with money.”

6. Shop for groceries weekly.

“If you wander up the road to buy a carton of milk and end up spending $75 on dinner bits and pieces – you are not money mindful about your grocery shopping habits. Grocery shopping can vary a great deal, so be consistent, plan and get a handle on your day-to-day spending on takeaway and coffees.”

7. Use cash.

“Take cash out every week for your forecastable expenses like food and petrol. For example, withdraw $500 each payday. It will have a psychological affect on you, because you can tangibly see how much is going out of your wallet.”

8. Enjoy life.

You don’t want to live so tightly that life is miserable, says Rankin. “Set aside your discretionary spending per month. For example, set aside money for treats, clothes, concert tickets – they make life worth living.”

9. Look for hidden savings.

Ask yourself: where can you rein in your discretionary spending? Can you pay your utility bills earlier and get a discount? Are you entitled to any Centrelink payments? Can you pay things like insurance annually to save?

10. Chip away.

If you have a credit card debt and you’re trying to get on top of your finances, pay the minimum consistently. “If you pay big chunks of money onto your card on pay day – inevitably you’ll find you need that money back and max the card out again.” Find out what day your CC payment is due, what the minimum is and pay 10% over that every month via direct debit.